PERSPECTIVES ON GENDER, HEALTH, AND HUMAN RIGHTS
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women's right to health and the U.N.'s sustainable health goals

3/15/2020

5 Comments

 
PictureStock photo from Weebly.com
by Caitlin Wort

​One article from this week’s media that struck me with its facts came from Dr. Flavia Bustreo and is called, “Ten Top Health Issues for Women’s Health Globally”. The main point of this reading is to inform people around the world what health issues women struggle with the most around the world. One thing that struck me the most was the fact that the reading mentioned that there are 222 million women around the world who aren’t getting the access they need to contraception. This article has meaning to my life because I have had access to contraception since I was 16 years old, just to help control my acne, I cannot imagine that there are 222 million young girls struggling with sexual and reproductive health and even hormonal acne, that cannot get the help they need because they don’t have access to contraception services near where they live.
The second reading that I am going to be writing about is called “What are the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals?” The main points of this reading include the development of sustainable development goals or SDGs, to help make the world a better place. Something that struck me was the fact that there are little things we can all do on a daily basis to help support these SDGs and make them more possible. This reading relates to global events around the world because there are currently places around the world that are struggling with climate change and are being affected by massive wildfires; there are also many places around the world that do not have access to clean water and sanitation and would benefit greatly from both of those things.

The two readings that are mentioned above, support each other because, the first reading talks about health issues for women around the world and the second reading that I am writing about talks about Sustainable Development Goals to help end poverty, protect the planet and make sure that all citizens have peace and prosperity. Other readings from this week’s module connect to the readings mentioned above because they are speaking about basic human rights and explaining what human rights means to citizens of different countries who may not know. In reading 1.2, there was a quote mentioned that was said at the 1993 UN Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, “Women’s rights are human rights” and I strongly believe this because women around the world do not have access to basic medications or sanitation products that they need on a daily basis.
 
 
1.2 Why Use a Human Rights Lens to Study Women's Global Health Issues? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1369235/pages/1-dot-2-why-use-a-human-rights-lens-to-study-womens-global-health-issues?module_item_id=10085461
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Bustreo, F. (2016, January 4). Ten top issues for women's health. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/life-course/news/commentaries/2015-intl-womens-day/en/
The Lazy Person's Guide to Saving the World - United Nations Sustainable Development. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/takeaction/
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5 Comments
Raiye Abunie
3/15/2020 03:35:56 pm

Hello Caitlin,

I strongly believe that if we all had access to health care and health resources we would see a positive change in health outcomes. As you have also found "222 million women around the world who aren’t getting the access they need to contraception" surprising I too find it shocking. It's amazing to see such health care methods being given to those who only have access to it, versus it being given to those whom actually "need" it. We see this is areas and communities, even parts of the world where poverty lays and still developing countries. What are some ideas you can think of which we can do from an individual perspective or as a community to help those in need, and now?

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Hannah Berg
3/15/2020 07:17:14 pm

Hi Caitlin!
Thank you for sharing your own personal experience. I like how you touched on the intersections between the UN's SDG's and improving women's health around the world. One of the most important things we can do as future professionals is recognize how our actions or inactions cause a ripple effect on both smaller and larger scale issues. For example, noticing how we may be contributing to social structures that perpetuate inequality, ultimately hindering any sort of positive development. Therefore, in order to actually align ourselves with plans to improve women's health and abide by Sustainable Development Goals there must be a solid commitment to the additional factors that influence both areas. Thank you for the detailed post!

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Gellila Solomon
3/15/2020 10:57:46 pm

Caitin
Thank you for sharing your own experience. When people think about tackling a huge issue like sexual health and the development goals, they think that it's out of their control. But what they don't realize that, is that by doing small things each day; they can make a difference. It still amazing me how there are so many women who don't have access to safe practices when it come to their sexual and reproductive health.

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Liya Chang
3/15/2020 11:41:45 pm

Hi Caitlin,

Thank you for sharing your personal experience. When I read the part about how 222 million young girls don't have access to contraception, I was surprised as well. I think not everyone understand how much contraceptions can help young girls who need it aside from sexual health. I also suffer from acne and had a hard time accessing and finding resources until I was able to drive. Location was also a barrier to me from getting the help that I needed. This issue is bigger than it seems but we don't hear much about it because sexual health isn't really talked about often on media. And what I hear from the people around me regarding contraception, it has a stigma attached to it. Which makes it difficult for people to talk about it openly, let alone voicing the difficulty of accessing it.

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Honey Cin
3/17/2020 10:04:29 pm

Hi Caitlin, even though it has been more than 20 years of the declaration of "Women's Rights are Human Rights," it is very sad that millions of women and girls still don't have access to basic medications and sanitation products today. In developed countries like the U.S, the contraceptives are easy to access, not only for reproductive health but also for hormonal health. But, even sanitation products, including pads that are hard to obtain in developing countries, not to mention contraception.

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